Athletics

Welcome from the Director of Athletics

Here at Washington Episcopal School we believe that a quality interscholastic athletic program is an important part of a student’s educational experience. WES Athletics is committed to promoting the ideals of sportsmanship, achievement, integrity, leadership, and team competition.

Our students love to compete, but they also love to play and do their best. They improve as athletes and grow as good people.

Starting in Grade 5, students choose between interscholastic sports teams (soccer, cross country, basketball, track, and lacrosse) and the WESQwest Program. WESQwest involves pursuits such as yoga, karate, biking, rock climbing, strength training, and rollerblading. No students are cut from the teams of their choice. Students have access to a new athletic turf field, a grass field, two gyms, a movement room, a rock climbing wall, and a weight room, plus two playgrounds.

By nurturing and encouraging these ideals through athletics, our goal is to improve the athletic ability and fitness of each student and instill in them the principles of teamwork and lifelong physical fitness.

William Isola Director of Athletics

Physical Education Curriculum

The WES Physical Education program strives to empower its students to sustain regular lifelong physical activity and to build a foundation for a healthy, productive, and fulfilling life.

Nursery – Kindergarten This curriculum is designed to introduce the child to a variety of experiences which involve the use of large muscle control, fundamental movement skills, manipulation of various types of objects, spatial awareness, gymnastics, listening skills, cooperative play situations, parachute activities, ball skills, target games, safety, and fun.

Students develop a variety of basic movement and manipulative skills so they will experience success and feel comfortable during present and future physical activity pursuits. PE increases kinesthetic awareness and promotes problem-solving and movement creativity in many situations.

Grades 1 – 4 The WES PE staff has developed an innovative curriculum which reinforces the WES philosophy of empowering students to sustain regular life-long physical activity. The curriculum in the early grades is the critical start of this process.

Grades 5-8 WESQwest

The WESQwest physical education program combines both traditional and non-traditional elements of physical education. The curriculum is designed to offer our students the opportunity to take on a wide variety of new challenges and activities, as well as continue to build upon past experiences.

By engaging and motivating our students in the WESQwest program, it is our goal to instill in them the importance of regular exercise and empower them to take responsibility for their personal health and fitness.

Some examples of activities are:

Rollerblading

Tae Kwon Do

Biking

Rock Climbing

Yoga

Volleyball

Badminton

Morning exercise is proven to increase a student’s readiness to learn, concentration, self-esteem, and confidence. Monday through Friday from 7:25 a.m.-7:50 a.m., Open Gym participants exercise with friends before class starts.

Athletic Offerings/Sport Teams

WES offers a range of athletic teams that compete against many different area independent schools. Students in Grades 5-8 may participate in single-sex teams. Each team is led by experienced coaches with backgrounds in the sports they coach. Students valuable lessons about teamwork, leadership, and sportsmanship. Typically, each season WES fields the following teams:

Please note that the 3:30 – 4:30 classes are considered part of the school day.

Athletics Handbook: Philosophy & Policies

Athletics Philosophy

Washington Episcopal School believes that a quality interscholastic athletic program is an important part of a student’s educational experience and strives to offer all students the opportunity to participate in interscholastic competition.

WES Athletics is committed to promoting the ideals of sportsmanship, respect, commitment, integrity, leadership and team competition. By nurturing and encouraging these ideals through athletics, our goal is to improve the athletic ability and fitness of each student and instill in them the basic ideals teamwork and lifelong physical fitness.

Expectations of a Student-Athlete

WES coaches recognize the importance of fostering young athletes in terms of skill development, teamwork, sportsmanship and participation, and look to instill these qualities in our student-athletes while encouraging excellence.

All student-athletes will be expected to adhere to high the standards set forth in the WES community. Taking on the responsibility of athletics is a difficult, but valuable experience. With this responsibility, WES student-athletes are expected to:

Attend all practices and games.

Put forth their best effort every time they take to the athletic field or court.

Conduct themselves with the highest level of sportsmanship before, during, and after competition.

Respect teammates, opponents, officials, and coaches.

Serve as role models for younger students and represent WES as ambassadors of the school when off campus.

Parents

WES believes that the role parents play in the life of a student-athlete is an important one. Parents’ positive support of players, coaches, and the total program helps define a part of the athletic environment in which our teams compete. It is our hope that parents will:

Be supportive of the WES athletic philosophy.

Keep an open line of communication with coaches and administration.

Cheer on our teams in the WES spirit.

We request that parents not approach coaches immediately after games or practices about matters of concern or that may be controversial. To give these matters the proper attention they deserve, we ask that parents call or email the coach and schedule a time to meet and discuss the matter.

Playing Time All athletes will participate in games throughout the course of the season, and though coaches will make every effort to play each player during each game, this will not always be the case. With that, no player will sit, game after game, without the opportunity to compete. Playing time is up to the discretion of the coaches. While it will not be equal, playing time will be fair and will be determined by, but not limited to, the athlete expectations as stated above, skill level, overall attitude, game situations, and competitive balance. We strongly encourage any student-athlete who has concerns about his or her playing time to speak with the coach before or after a practice.

Schedules The most up to date schedules can be found on the school website, Athletics Calendar. Schedules tend to change over the course of the season so it would be prudent to check each week for any changes.

Uniforms Students on sport teams wear designated WES team uniforms. Each athlete is responsible for his/her team uniform. They are to be washed on a regular basis and brought in for use during games. Replacement uniforms will not be given out on the day of a game if forgotten. Students will not be allowed to play without the full issued uniform. Uniforms are not to be worn during practice and are to be returned at the end of the season. Parents will be charged $50 per missing uniform.

Weather Policy If a game needs to be canceled due to inclement weather, the decision will be made by 12:30 p.m. whenever possible. The information will be posted on the WES website. Parents can also sign up for and “alert” on the website. This will send an email or text when a change or cancelation has been made. Go to the appropriate schedule and click on the alert button (it looks like a bell) and follow the instructions.

Travel PolicyStudent athletes will be taken to and from games on WES busses and/or by parent volunteers when needed. Parents can choose to pick up child from an away game, but are asked to let the coach know they have retrieved their child and that they are leaving. Busses will not wait at an away game for a child to be picked up.